Store profile: Erstwhile Jewelry Co.

March 28, 2013

You know that part at the end of Miss Congeniality, when Sandra Bullock’s character is so overwhelmed that she fans her eyes with her hands in that silly way she used to do when making fun of the beauty pageant contestants, but in total seriousness? I do that while I look at Erstwhile Jewelry Co.’s website.

“Our collection of vintage and antique engagement rings of the Victorian, Edwardian, and Art Deco eras is carefully curated for the discerning eye. Each ring, a timeless keepsake, worthy of being passed down generation after generation.” – Erstwhile Jewelry Co.

How I hear that: “Becky, we picked out all of these pretties just for you. Please oogle them forever.”

Their photography is lovely, their descriptions are comprehensive, and their price range is varied. They are also friendly on Twitter.

How luscious (and beautifully photographed) is this baby? It’s Edwardian/early Art Deco, circa 1905. Check out those curvaceous, twining side details – ribbons of diamonds that perfectly adorn that stunning center diamond. Speaking of the center stone, it’s a 2.33 carat EGL certified old European cut diamond with H-I color and SI1 clarity.

This ring is currently for sale, and it’s looking right at you. It’s pretty close to my size.

A better look at that amazing side detail. Have you ever seen anything like it?

Let’s see some more. Please be warned: some of these rings are from the sold gallery. I included them because I love them with a deep and fiery passion that cannot be quenched by the fact that they belong to someone else.

This 1930’s piece is absolutely one of the coolest rings around. And so unique – I’ve seen Art Deco engagement rings with calibre emerald accents, but never like this. The center stone is a 1.20 carat EGL certified old European cut diamond with J-K color and SI1 in clarity. It also features delicate millegraining around the edges of the stones, and has engraving down the shank. I’d be happy to work this one into my right-hand ring rotation.

I love this early Art Deco ring and so does Erstwhile – they made (and sold) a reproduction of it. It features a .70 carat EGL certified old European cut diamond with G-H color and VS2 clarity, encircled with single cut diamonds. It was made in 1910 and was originally a clasp for a strand of pearls; it’s been converted. How cool is that? And so pretty.

This front view is of the reproduction, which has a cushion cut diamond. They’re very similar in style.

If you’re looking for something sleek, check out this solitaire with engraving and sidestones. From 1930, this late Art Deco beauty is centered by a 1.20 carat EGL certified old European cut diamond with K-L color and VS2 clarity. Dazzling from all angles.

This beauty is a little different, thanks to those vivid emerald accents. It’s Art Deco, from 1925. It’s centered with an .79 carat (approx) EGL certified old European cut diamond with F-G color and VS1 clarity. The center stone is accentuated by a row of triangle cut emerald arrows on ether side, and single cut diamonds all around the geometric platinum setting. It’s also engraved along down the shank, and is pretty much glorious from every angle.

A last peek of the first ring I showed you, because I can’t resist it.

I didn’t mean for this post to be so long, but what could I have possibly left out? They do sell things that are not engagement rings, but their engagement rings are what I like the best. All images and info are thanks to Erstwhile Jewelry Co.

Word to the wise, I’ve had nothing but unpleasant experiences with Erstwhile to the point that we decided to purchase my engagement ring and wedding rings elsewhere.

First, we picked out a lovely emerald and diamond art deco ring we found from Erstwhile on Etsy. We made an appointment to see it in NYC. Because they wouldn’t accommodate an appointment except Tuesday – Thursday, and we live in DC, this meant taking time off from work. The Monday before, I noticed the ring was no longer listed on Etsy. I emailed Erstwhile to find out the status and was told the ring had sold. They never contacted us to cancel the appointment or to let us know. There was another ring listed on their website, but not on Etsy, I asked to see a picture of it on a hand since all their other rings have hand pictures. I never received a response. We found a third ring we liked, and I called to ensure the ring really could be sized down from an 8 to a 5. They never returned my call. My fiance called and they rather snottily told him they wouldn’t have put in the description that it could be sized if it were an issue. However, it’s one thing to size a ring up a size or even down a size, but this was 1. an antique ring. 2. sizing down 3 sizes. and 3. the ring appeared to have already been sized up once. All in all their customer service is appalling.

First I’d like to apologize, I’m sorry you had an unpleasant experience. While it is true that we usually only take appointments Tuesday to Thursday please keep in mind we are a small company and need other days to shop for our rings. We don’t have a store in the traditional sense, however we do have an office/showroom and do our best to accommodate our customers. We do on occasion make appointments Mondays & Fridays.

We are primarily an online shop with our focus being on online sales. Because we want to be fair to our customers we operate on a first come first serve basis, giving people the opportunity to purchase a ring online at anytime which guarantees it being theirs (we have a 15 day return policy).

We are very picky about our ring selection and therefor have a limited inventory at any given time therefor we never hold rings for appointments because we want to give everybody the opportunity to see them.

All of our engagement rings are pictured on a hand. I apologize that we didn’t get back to you sooner. I do remember when your boyfriend called and perhaps there was a miscommunication with my tone, I assure you I never meant to sound “snotty”. Hope you found your dream ring.

[…] Both of these wonderful 1920s engagement rings are currently available at Erstwhile Jewelry Co – please see descriptions above for links. All images and info in this post are thanks to Erstwhile Jewelry Co. […]